Archive for Press
March 8, 2008 at 10:16 pm · Filed under Press · By JB
The Wall Street Journal featured an article by Raymund Flandez about Etsy and grassroots promotion through social networking on Thursday, March 6.
You can read the article online here.
The article devotes several paragraphs to the “We Love Etsy” site created by seller Lis Kidder.
Last but not least, the online version of the article also features a video interview with Etsy founder Rob Kalin.
(in the interest of full disclosure, Lis Kidder is also an editor at UEN)
March 8, 2008 at 10:22 am · Filed under Marketing, Press, Profit · By Serena
American public broadcasting service NPR mentioned Etsy in the article “Digital DIY: Web Helps Do-It-Yourselfers Share Ethic.”
Under the header Making a Living from Making Something Unique:
Tens of thousands of small entrepreneurs do just that at Etsy.com, which reported $26 million in sales last year. Etsy’s CEO, Rob Kalin, says those sales came from hand-made jewelry, clothing, bags and accessories.
In the spacious workroom known as Etsy Labs, at the Web site’s Brooklyn headquarters, during Etsy’s monthly crafters’ open house, Kalin runs the numbers.
“In 2007, over 50 Etsy sellers made over $30,000 on the site, and our top seller made over $125,000,” Kalin says. “Our big mission for 2008 is to show that you can make a living making things. Theres a whole world out there for doing something you love.”
In addition to Etsy, several other websites and services are discussed.
Audio will be available later on today here. (For our non-US readers, NPR is primarily a radio station.)
February 29, 2008 at 3:35 pm · Filed under Marketing, Press · By Kate Black
The Martha Stewart Show - Etsy
Originally uploaded by thekateblack.
Rob Kalin from Etsy was one of the guests on Martha Stewart’s Leap Year show today!
The focus was on artwork made by members, including CubistLiterature & DesiraPesta — the shirt Rob’s wearing, The Black Apple — doll & painting, The Sweetest Pea — stuffed monster on the left, and ToyBreaker — screenprinted ties.
January 10, 2008 at 9:16 am · Filed under Press · By Serena
“Crafting Goes Cool: Why DIY?” from the Des Moines Register features a handful of Etsians with background info, pictures, and links to their store(s).
January 5, 2008 at 9:41 am · Filed under Etsy Staff, Press · By Serena
“Arts and Crafts Find New Life Online” describes the growing popularity of crafting, starting with a snapshot in the life of Etsy admin Anda Lewis Corrie (a.k.a. simply “Anda” around here).
It’s an overcast December afternoon, but the Pop Up Community Center in downtown Manhattan is buzzing. Spread along a white wooden table, a half-dozen people are ironing plastic bags together to create a fabric made of recycled material. Others are bent over sewing machines, turning the plastic into colorful tote bags, wallets, even pillows. Occasionally they turn for advice to Anda Lewis Corrie, who is leading this workshop on transforming old plastic bags into useful objects.
This article compares Etsy to Ebay and does give some profit estimations:
Etsy won’t reveal its revenues but expects to turn a profit early next year on what it takes in from a 20 cents-per-item listing fee and the 3.5% commission on goods that merchants sell through the site. In 2007 those merchants sold 1.92 million items worth a total of $26.5 million, according to Etsy. The 2 1/2-year-old startup produces online videos, hosts virtual town halls, and runs workshops with the goal of persuading more folks to teach each other to create and sell crafts on Etsy. Since it’s a sort of eBay (EBAY) for handmade crafts, the more people who sign up to sell their handiworks on the site, the better the company does. Says Corrie: “We want to help people make a living making things.”
Etsy’s revenues have been reported in other articles, so you can read our press coverage archives for that information.
January 3, 2008 at 7:32 am · Filed under Press · By Serena
Time Magazine named Etsy it’s 5th top website. The feature is available to read online here.
December 30, 2007 at 12:16 pm · Filed under Press · By Serena
An article featuring Etsy as one of “the hit websites of 2008″ was published in the Guardian Unlimited on December 24. Etsy was first in a list that includes Twitter (also a Union Square Ventures company),Dopplr, Moshimonsters, and Seesmic.
In other news, UEN editor has an awesome holiday and only resurfaces to post the article one week later.
December 16, 2007 at 1:28 am · Filed under Etsy Staff, Press · By Serena
The New York Times has a monster, seven page article on Etsy this weekend.
Handmade 2.0 - New York Times
Sellers mentioned include RareBeasts, loranscruggs, Clayflower22, Simply Soaps, Circa Ceramics, and Black Apple.
The article also contains sales figures and more details about Etsy’s founders and first days.
December 14, 2007 at 7:40 pm · Filed under Etsy Staff, Marketing, Press · By Serena
Etsy and Matt Stinchcomb are mentioned in a USA Today article, along with more sales figures.
USA Today: “To give a gift from the heart, why not make it yourself?”
December 7, 2007 at 4:26 am · Filed under Etsy Staff, Press · By Lis
Mary Kathleen Flynn, Senior Editor of Tech Confidential, the publication that recently ran an article on Etsy founder Rob Kalin, posted on the forums in a thread on the topic:
Thanks for checking out our recent coverage of Etsy.com and founder Rob Kalin:
http://www.techconfidential.com/features/startup-stories/the-homemade- ceo-etsy-founder-1.php
You ask why we would bring personality into reporting on a company?
The head of a company and his or her personality — credibility, reliability, professionalism as well as creativity, talent, intelligence, skill, background — are crucial to the success of a company, especially the founder when you’re talking about a startup.
For example, when we asked investors in Etsy.com — such as Union Square Ventures co-founder Fred Wilson and Flickr founder Caterina Fake — why they put their money into Etsy, their faith in Rob Kalin was a huge part of their answer.
As journalists, our mission is to give readers a full picture of the tech dealmakers we cover. (I’d say fair and balanced, but I’m afraid I’d sound like a rep from a certain conservative news network.)
As Fred Wilson told me, Rob is a maverick who’s out to change the world. But Rob is also struggling a bit with the responsibilities of running a successful Internet company — as even his closest compatriots will acknowledge, and as we discovered when he skipped town without canceling an interview with us. :)
Does that mean sometimes he comes across as a bit of a flake? Well yeah it does.
But, heck, as you say, many of us are flakey, aren’t we?
:)
Hope you’ll keep reading Tech Confidential.
I know we’ll keep following Etsy and Rob.
Edit by Serena on Dec 8, 10 a.m.:
On Dec 7th at 10:22am, the author of the article, Stacey Higginbotham, responded to questions raised in the thread:
Hey guys, I’m the person who wrote the article on Etsy and wanted to address the questions on the 11,000 items. That number came from an interview with Rob done in October. I’m not sure if the site has jumped in popularity or if he was giving out an old number, but I’m glad to see that even more items are listed. And you’re right, it’s not an eBay-style auction site. It’s an e-commerce site.
Thanks for reading and responding to the story.
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